Is India healthcare ready?

The Healthcare industry is one of the largest growing sectors providing both revenue and employment to the country. The Healthcare industry includes hospitals, medical devices, clinical trials, and telemedicine, health insurance, pharmaceutical and biotechnological companies. Indian healthcare delivery system is categorised into two major components public (run by the government) and private. India’s healthcare system is also cost-effective in comparison to the countries like the United States and Europe. India also possesses numerous well-skilled medical professionals.

India has pioneering in many sectors but healthcare is lagging behind. According to National Health Profile data, India’s investment in public health is just 1.28% of the gross domestic product (GDP). This is among the lowest of all countries in Asia. If we combine both public and private expenditure on healthcare, it is merely 3.6%. According to the World Bank, India ranks 24th in the world from the bottom. Countries like Afghanistan, Libya, Myanmar, Yemen and Sri Lanka having low economy then India spend more on healthcare. Apart from this, medical care in India is not universal. There is a great difference in the quality and exposure of medical care and treatment between rural and urban areas. Rural areas often suffer from the unavailability of doctors, nurses, hospitals, public health workers and sometimes even basic healthcare services.

Our country faces many challenges in the healthcare sector based on awareness, accessibility, affordability, availability and accountability. Population in rural areas is not well educated hence lack awareness about basic health issues. The Indian healthcare infrastructure is not able to stride with the demands of the growing population. A study revealed that many of the public health centres (PHCs) do not have basic infrastructural facilities such as beds, wards, toilets, drinking water facilities, clean labour rooms for delivery, and regular electricity. Eventually, many people opt for private healthcare facilities due to the availability of specialized doctors, diagnostic services and medicines, thus subjected to more expanses.

Our country faces many challenges in the healthcare sector based on awareness, accessibility, affordability, availability and accountability. Population in rural areas is not well educated hence lack awareness about basic health issues. The Indian healthcare infrastructure is not able to stride with the demands of the growing population.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), India was suffering from a shortage of healthcare professionals; the nurse to patient ratio for India is only 1:483, i.e. 2.1 nurses per 1000 population.  This workers statistic indicates that the country is in a “critical shortage of healthcare providers” category. India faces the problem of acute shortages and unbalanced dispersals of skilled healthcare workers as have many other low- and middle-income countries. Not only is there a shortage of health professionals, on the other hand these workers are also determined in urban areas, leading to rural areas with a lack of quality care. The coronavirus pandemic has plunged weak India's healthcare system to the edge of downfall, which was already overstressed and overloaded.

India’s healthcare system is standing at the junction of achievements and suffering. The country has successfully eradicated polio; controlled HIV largely. On the other hand, is still facing a huge economic burden due to Non-communicable and infectious diseases, struggles to set a balance between accessibility, affordability and quality care. In this turbulent situation, to improve and build up the healthcare system policymakers, healthcare providers, business leaders, technology providers and pharmaceutical companies need to formulate strategies and make collaborative efforts to strengthening the healthcare system.

A strong public health system is needed to look after and save populations from the risk and complications related to health, and to ascertain that everyone has unbiased access to good quality health services throughout the country. Refining the quality of the health care system call for a focus on governance issues, including improving public-sector management, building institutional capacity, and encouraging a culture of data-driven policies. Change is an expected and universal fact. We hope that the forthcoming years will bring in the much-needed positive change in the Indian healthcare system.